3i4 CLEMENCEAU
copy which I took to America with me. Hold on—there
are some leaves which I gathered out there in it. (He
offers it to me. A silence?) Poor Jourdan! I see him
again, in that cafe. . . .
MYSELF : Democracy was a lovely thing in those days.
CLEMENCEAU : Yes, like all things which are yet to be
born.
MYSELF : I also found amongst your papers some
documents relating to the i6th May.1 There was a sort of
committee of delegates from the Left, amongst whom were
Gambetta, Charles Floquet and others, who used to meet
at Leon Renault's—you were the secretary. Who was
Leon Renault ?
CLEMENCEAU : Well, he became Prefect of Police, poor
devil, and I think he's still living in some corner or other.
Can you imagine Gambetta, at that time, a fellow swamped
in illusions, getting himself into the frame of mind of a
conspirator ? He had annexed himself to a general of the
name of Yung, I think, and with the help of the general we.
were going to do amazing things, Gambetta and I—for
I was a sort of understudy to him. It was going to happen
at Lille. There's no need for me to depict for you
Gambetta's conspiracies—they were screamingly funny.
Naturally I had taken the matter very seriously, on account
of Gambetta, on account of this general—because I was
young and because, I must admit, it often happens that
when one takes things seriously like that, well, you never
know, they can become serious. Things are not serious
in themselves.
MYSELF : No ?
CLEMENCEAU : Certainly not. They're serious because
of the conviction you put into them. However, I took
this all very seriously, and gave each Deputy or Senator
I brought along a slip of paper bearing a number and
1 See Chronological Table for * Seize mai' conspkacy.—Translators note.